


I Said We Were In This Together, Right?

by thelocalmaniac



Series: Lucio Is Smitten [1]
Category: The Arcana (Visual Novel)
Genre: Cuddling & Snuggling, Fan Apprentice - Freeform, Fluff, Gender-Neutral Apprentice (The Arcana), Mentions of Portia and Nadia, Minor Asra, Minor Violence, Not Canon Compliant, Other, They/Them/Theirs Pronouns, and they definitely do, contains spoilers of the most recent chapter for lucio's route, immediately following Chapter IX, in which lucio doesn't actually expect the apprentice to come after him, named apprentice, some smooching
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-26
Updated: 2019-09-26
Packaged: 2020-10-28 14:15:09
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,362
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20779931
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thelocalmaniac/pseuds/thelocalmaniac
Summary: Lucio doesn't actually think the Apprentice will come for him in the Devil's Realm.The Apprentice is absolutely going to break down the gates of the Devil's Realm and take back their dumb goatman.And Asra is resigned™.





	I Said We Were In This Together, Right?

**Author's Note:**

> Nyx Hydra and the Arcana are not my own.  
This follows Lucio’s Route Chapter IX – The Hermit: Paths of Fate, where the story has left off. It will follow the canon for Lucio’s Route until there, where I am assuming it will become canon-divergent from whatever the writers have planned.  
I just needed the apprentice to go and rescue Lucio ASAP because I am stressed af.
> 
> **EDIT: This is now canon divergent as of the new chapter released! 10.17.2019

_“...Elodie. Wake up. Please wake up."_

_The world suddenly vanishes around me. I fall through endless emptiness._

_A hand clasps mine, pulling me from a pool of water..._

Elodie’s eyes open to meet a pair of worried violet ones as they were pulled from the fountain. Asra hauled them to their feet, relief etched into their features as a soft, desperate sort of laugh escaped them. “Elodie. You’re alright. I’m...I’m glad.” The magician pulled their apprentice to them firmly, offering a squeeze. “I searched for you after we were separated. I came back to see if I could coax your spirit back to our world, instead.”

While Asra explained, Elodie was trying to get their wits about them. Everything felt hazy, like a dream rather than a memory. They remembered the Star’s Labyrinth, the Devil’s chains surrounding Lucio, the sound of his scream as they encircled him, being left alone on scorched earth--

_Oh._ “Lucio. The Devil, he has him. I have to go back.”

Yes. That’s it. That’s what’s happened. Lucio is imprisoned and alone. Asra had dragged them back to their dimension, and Lucio is alone.

Asra’s eyes, if possible, grew larger. Their hands twitched as they stepped back from the apprentice, an unreadable expression on their face. Asra had a complicated relationship with Lucio, this much the apprentice knew, but that was not important right now. “The Devil? But why would....” Shaking their head of fluffy white hair, Asra exhaled. Clearly, there was something they knew that Elodie did not. Was it about Lucio and the Devil’s bonds? The ‘debts’ Lucio owed him? “It doesn’t matter. You can’t go after Lucio alone, and honestly, why would you want to?” Elodie opened their mouth, then shut it; they didn’t want to see the light leave Asra’s expression if they explained how their relationship with the ex-Count had grown during the magician’s absence. Another time, another day. “Our time would be best spent trying to find out what the Devil has planned and telling the others what we have found out.”

But that did not sit right with the apprentice. Leaving Lucio after all they had been through? After they had tried to find Asra for so long together? After the wyrm, the beetles, the Devil? After he had begged for their help? No, that did not sit right with them at all. Elodie drew themselves up to their full height (which, admittedly, was not very tall) and balled up their fists, steeling their resolve, jaw setting stiffly, lips forming a hard line across their angular features. “No. I’m not leaving him there.” Everyone else had left him. Wasn’t that what Lucio had said? That nobody had ever come to find him in his wing after he died? Elodie recalled the flaring of Lucio’s nose in his goat form, the angry tremble of his voice, the hurt and anger when they had explained that the Palace staff had been too frightened to come down looking. That, or they did not care to. Elodie couldn’t do that to him again. As time had progressed, it became clear that Lucio was very capable of change, and perhaps, just maybe, Elodie could help be a part of that. They could not stay here and do nothing. “Asra, take me back. Or teach me how to go.” It mattered. “I have to _go_, Asra.”

“But--”

“If you do not, I'll do it on my own, and I promise you that whatever happens then will be much worse.” ‘No’ was not an option here. Elodie was going, and it was up to Asra whether he would be helping or Elodie would be getting hurt trying.

The magician grit their teeth, but it was clear that their apprentice wasn't budging. Finally, they nodded and guided Elodie out of the fountain to dry off. After they were done shivering, they would begin.

\--

After about a day of training the apprentice’s magic on how to get in and out of the Arcana Realm on their own, Asra and Elodie decided that the safest course of action would be for the two of them to enter together so they would find the Devil’s Realm faster. Then Asra would return to the living world to watch over their body while the apprentice tried to rescue the Count. If anything went wrong, Asra would draw Elodie out again. “If this doesn’t work though, we do things my way. Okay?”

Elodie had nodded, acting more confident than they felt.

And now....

Well, now they stood outside of the Devil’s Gate. The center of the realm is almost a replica of the Vesuvian palace, only instead of white stone and golden spires, it looks like it's carved out of shiny obsidian. Asra turned to them. “Do you even have a plan?”

“I...broke one of the Devil’s chains, before.”

“Do you think you could do it again?”

“Maybe?”

Asra sighed. “Well. Alright. I’ll go keep an eye on your body. Please, Elodie, leave if anything goes wrong. Don’t do anything more dangerous than what you are doing already.” They reached out and took Elodie’s hand, squeezing it. “But, for what it’s worth, you are stronger than you think. You can do this. If anyone can, it’s you.”

For the first time since being dragged out of the Arcana Realm, Elodie smiled, though fleetingly. They nodded; Asra inclined their head and then exited the realm, form disappearing as if it had never been. Elodie turned to look at the gate, dread pooling in the pit of their stomach. But there was no better option than this. Where else would the Devil keep Lucio than in his realm? _If...no, _when_ I get Lucio out of there, we are going back to the living realm and not coming back here until we have all the answers we need. This was far too dangerous._ Comforted by the nerve of their thoughts alone, Elodie straightened their spine and, knowing that they would run if they hesitated any longer, pushed the doors to the gate open with inhuman force amplified by their magic.

They let their emotions course through them, feeling the tingle of magic strengthening as it focused itself, energy practically pulsating from their small, hunger-pang frame as they strode into the hall. Even though there is no sun, the realm is bathed in crimson light. The throne room is filled with high sweeping arches of obsidian, and at the center of it all looms a black throne on a raised dais. As Elodie enters, the Devil manifested as if conjured by their thoughts alone and turned to face them, his eyebrows lifted in an elegant arc. He appraised them. “It is polite to knock, child.”

Elodie did not bother too much with his words, not wanting to lose concentration on their magic and their anger. “Where is he?”

“I don’t suppose you could be more specific?”

Magic gathered at their fingertips like a slash of lightning, unbidden, rage curling across their ribs and into their chest; it burst from them with a thunderous crack, and the throne was sliced in half, falling to pieces as the apprentice approached, pace quickening in their stride. “Lucio. Bring him to me.”

The Devil chuckled. “I hardly think you are the one who should be giving orders, runt. But I will play your game. He is in the room already.” His red eyes, rimmed with a black sclera, narrowed a fraction before he turned his head to look over Elodie’s left shoulder.

Like so much of the Arcana Realm, each realm can change only as illusions made by the Arcana themselves; as Lucio, bound and whimpering in chains that look like they are piping hot to the touch, materializes behind them, Elodie is suddenly certain that he had been present the entire time, that the Devil had only hidden him to make things interesting. Elodie’s breath was punched out of them in a whoosh as they watched Lucio, who seemed to suddenly realize he was physically in the throne room, looking around wildly before settling his gaze on them. For a beat, he seemed speechless. His jaw dropped and his eyes bugged. Then, loudly:

“Elodie! You came--” The Devil snapped his fingers and another chain moved to slap itself across Lucio’s mouth, silencing him. Lucio's cry was muffled. Elodie visibly flinched, a crack in their demeanor, before turning back to the Devil.

“Release him and let him come back with me.” They demanded, voice tremulous, and cursed themselves. It was a lot harder to be taken seriously if your voice was shaking.  
  
Elodie gave the Devil a wary look, not trusting him enough to turn their back on him, but it couldn't be avoided. They hurried over to Lucio and fell to their knees at his side. They touched the chains and hissed as it burned them, wrenching their hands back. The scent of Lucio’s burning flesh made them want to puke, but they tried to ignore it. The Count struggled against the binds, eyes bright with pain.

The Devil took a single, intimidating step forward, and Elodie shuddered. They looked back at him, seething. “And what will you give me in return?” the Devil purred.

Elodie’s throat closed. _A deal?_ They had not expected that. Of course, they had hoped beyond hopes that Lucio may have made a nuisance enough of himself that the Devil would be willing to part with him. “_Anything_,” they whispered. Lucio’s eyes, bloodshot and groggy from the pain, seemed to concentrate on this exchange like his life depended on it, and he tried to shake his head. The chains tightened around him and the Count gasped. It was clear that Lucio did want Elodie making any promises to the Devil; look where that had gotten _him_, after all.

This was not the answer that the Devil had expected, for he laughed loudly this time, throwing his head back. Smirking, the goat made a wide circle around them; Elodie followed his trajectory with their careful gaze. “Ha! I'm certain you’re happy, Lucio! Isn’t this what you wanted?” the Devil taunted. “Right, Lucio? Remember? Now you might actually be able to call yourself ‘beloved’ more honestly. Perhaps they will even give you their body, next.” This made the Devil laugh again, and he wiped an imaginary tear from his eye. Lucio stared at the Devil, then at the apprentice. There was a look in his eye that they couldn't place. The Devil, to Elodie again, said, “You could take his place, I suppose.”

Oh,_ hell_ no.

That was not an option. They were not staying there. A deed, or a request, of course, _anything_. But if they did not both get to return home to their realm then this was a shit deal.

There had to be another way.

Opting not to answer the Devil immediately, the apprentice looked at the red, angry welts on their palms from Lucio’s chains. “..What are these even chains made of?” they muttered to themselves, nose scrunching up.

The Devil shrugged in turn, answering the question that they had probably not meant for him to hear. “There are only two ways chains can be made. Either through a pact—like the one Lucio made with me three years ago or the one you are about to make--or by bringing pre-existing bonds into my realm—powerful ones--and corrupting them. They cannot be broken.”

Elodie blinked. Lucio watched them think through this, something close to amazement on his features, though they could also feel the fear he held. H_e was waiting for them to leave._ they realized with a pang. It wasn't a worthwhile deal, after all. More people would miss Elodie than would miss him. It would make far more sense for the apprentice to say ‘no deal’ and leave him in the Arcana Realm to fester.

The Count was startled from his thoughts and seemed surprised when a blinding grin tore across the magician’s face. They met the Count's gaze evenly, urging him to be patient, to _trust_ them, then glanced over their shoulder at the Devil. “Now, that’s not true. I broke them once today already.”

They hummed to themselves, turning away from the annoyed look that had overtaken the Devil’s features, looking at Lucio, then the chains. Solid, burning, restrained. _Corrupting powerful bonds, hm? Well, if I know anything about magic, then these bonds should be able to be uncorrupted, too._ With this resonant thought, Elodie reached out, grasping the chains in their hands. They winced at the spike of heat, sharp and hot and excruciating, that flashed through their body, but they did not let go this time. Instead, they poured as much magic as they had down the chains, closed their eyes, and focused. Focused on Lucio, on the sharp, cruel edges of his smile, the careful decisiveness in every word and expression so nobody could see through him, his boisterous cackle, his pride at being at the center of their attention—then they thought about how much they wanted to see that smile soften into something more, how much they wanted to see him take down some of those walls, and held onto that wish. The chains faltered, then chipped away into gold, heat cooling to become warmth under their touch--

\--and they loosened and fell away.

Lucio leaned over, hugging his body tightly as he caught his breath, trying to pull himself together. _They did it, I'm free, I'm out_. He looked up at Elodie as they stood, stood, swinging the golden chain in their hands purposefully, and turned to face the Devil. Their expression was one of fierce delight, smile feral, looking for all the world like a powerful deity coming to wreck havoc on an unrepenting disciple. Lucio did not like power in others--power could always be turned against another, against him, and he had been betrayed so many times--but for some reason he did not hate this show. Something in him knew that Elodie would not turn against him. Not today, at least. If nothing else, he trusted that they hated the Devil more than they were sick of him.

The Devil had carefully schooled his expression. Part of the magician wanted to take the Devil down then and there, and something bitter and petty coiled in their gut at the prospect of keeping the Arcana god from hurting anyone else. But this use of magic was already a strain, and Elodie had a horrible feeling that they wouldn’t be able to finish the Devil off today—and that trying to do so would be a death sentence. If they wanted to get them and the Count back alive, they would need to choose flight over fight today. “I've decided I’m turning down your bargain. I don’t think we need your help.” With this, they threw the chain in their hands at the Devil, who moved out of the way hastily in the least dignified motion Elodie had ever seen from the fifteenth Arcana. In that instance, Elodie grabbed one of Lucio’s arms in their hands and reached out to Asra, trying to pull themselves out of the Arcana Realm in the same breath. Lucio made an agonized sound, grimacing. He needed to be healed from his burns later.

Just as the Devil got his act together and made to lunge toward them, claws grasping, Asra felt the apprentice reaching their magic out across universes and gave a resounding tug on their bond.

\--

Lucio and Elodie fell through darkness again. The apprentice held onto his forearm for dear life so he could not fall away from them as Asra had, straining to keep him close.

And then they fell into the real world; Elodie rejoined their body while Lucio shed his own.

Elodie’s body felt heavy after having been so long without it. They groaned and their knees buckled under their weight. Thankfully, Asra reached out to catch them before they could fall into the water.

Though still feeling phantasmal waves of pain, Count Lucio was gone from his corporeal form and in his ghost body again, a body that had not been injured in three years. Funny how he still felt faint, how his flesh still _burned_. Lucio stood from the fountain waters, spluttering (because he _had_ fallen in), and moved to sit on the edge. He was looking...out of it.

Asra barely even looked at him, setting Elodie up on the edge of the fountain, pressing a hand to their forehead to check for a fever. After making sure Elodie was safe and sound, they smiled and straightened up, saying something about “Getting help and food” or something like that before racing off through the palace gardens. Faust was circled around his shoulders. Elodie wondered when he had come to join Asra in their waiting.

Breathing ragged, Elodie glanced over at Lucio, who still seemed bad. With some effort, they shifted closer to the Count on the ledge, reaching out and taking his hand. Lucio flinched, then blinked, looking over at them. It was as if he did not recognize them. But Elodie did not move, simply waiting for Lucio to stop disassociating.

Finally it seemed to sink in that this had all happened, that this goofy little magician who was more bones than anything else had decided to go into the Devil’s Realm alone after him, and had _done_ exactly that. They had _succeeded_. Lucio looked at them with something close to awe, relaxing as his body realized that he was safe.

There were words here, somewhere, things they did not have the language to explain or lay on the table yet, with feelings neither could convey in any way other than gratitude, but they would get there.

Being a little more emotionally mature than the Count, Elodie filled the silence with, “I said we were in this together, right? In the labyrinth?" They smiled at him. "It matters to me, what happens to you.” Then they knocked their shoulder lightly into his, and the gravity of the things they could not say dissipated for the moment.

Lucio snickered. It was a relief to be having a conversation as lighthearted as this. “That’s a lot coming from such a cute, hotshot wizard-magician.”

“I’m _definitely_ not a wizard. But thanks, I think?” Then Elodie reached out and tugged his head down to press a kiss to his forehead, all tenderness and affection because while they both did not really know how to explain this relationship they had, they wanted to make sure that he knew that there was _something_ there. “Try not to get kidnapped again anytime soon.”

“You act like I planned this,” Lucio muttered, somehow irritated by the sentiment, but mellowed when the apprentice moved toward him. The kiss on the forehead was welcome, but not enough—when Elodie pulled away, he followed them with hungry lips, kissing them feverishly, tangling his long fingers into their short copper tresses. Then he moved to kiss the smattering of freckles on their face, saying ‘thank you’ in the way he was the most comfortable. Pretty soon Elodie was laughing, hands on his face to push him away, and he used this action to place kisses on their fingers and palms and wrists instead, grinning. It was warm and soft, and easy—they didn’t need to talk about the fact that Elodie had followed him to the Devil’s Realm by themself was _crazy_, absolutely batshit crazy, or how the fact that Elodie had felt perfectly_ justified_ in doing so was a loyalty the Count was unfamiliar with, or even that Lucio had not really believed that Elodie would come after him at all. Elodie certainly didn’t gain anything from that arrangement, not after the Devil had left them alone, taking only Lucio. They would have been safe, they could have gone back to their loved ones. Lucio could not fathom why Elodie had come after him. Not even the well-practiced lie that “everyone loved him” would have explained such blatant devotion and stupidity.

No, those were conversations for another day. For right now he could just show his relief and gratitude.

Finally, both their hands and arms stilled, both smiling idiotically at the other while their breathless laughs died down. Hands still in prime face-touching position, Elodie tugged his head down to rest on their shoulder. Still hungry for every ounce of human contact he could garner, the phantom nuzzled into their neck, resting his body against them like they had in the maze. They stayed like that until Asra got back, and not even then did Lucio move, feeling boneless and comfortable. He turned his face further away from the magician, letting the apprentice respond to whatever that asshole was saying. He trusted they would make dignified enough decisions for him—another fact that he did not want to tackle today. Not yet. But it was worth mentioning that he had never trusted anybody else to make choices for him like that before.

Asra passed a small dumpling to the apprentice, who ate it as if famished. He supposed that they _had_ used a lot of magic in the last few hours or days or whatever. Elodie offered some to Lucio, but he made a noncommittal sound, still tucked into the apprentice and too comfortable to move.

“I feel him with you, but is he..._with_ you?” Asra asked the apprentice, rolling up their sleeves a little, needing something to do with their hands. They could feel Lucio’s putrid presence again, but they still could not see him.

“Yeah,” the apprentice replied loftily. Elodie slid an arm around Lucio’s shoulders and moved to pet his hair absentmindedly as they finished off their meal, feeling energized with each bite. Lucio purred like a cat, pushing up into their hand and moving in closer, arranging his lanky limbs so he had his legs around their waist, hooked at the ankles. Count Lucio didn’t mind clinging to them; in this situation, any positive contact was more than welcome, and he doubted that Elodie would deny him. “He’s stickin’ around.” Asra didn’t seem thrilled, but they left it at that.

Nadia and Portia had both been relieved when they had heard of Elodie’s safe return from Asra, and Portia had promised to come by the fountain with help to get Elodie to their room, immediately going to the stables which were in the opposite direction. By the time Portia had arrived with a horse in tow, the apprentice was nearly asleep against the Count. Asra and Portia helped Elodie onto the thoroughbred and Lucio refused to be parted from them the entire time.

Elodie was escorted to their room with the promise that they would seek out Asra and Nadia when they awoke regarding their time in the Arcana Realm. They agreed before shutting the door. Soon they had collapsed in their bed, not even bothering to take their shoes off, and Lucio moved to join them without asking. The apprentice huffed, rolling their eyes, but made room for the ghost regardless, lifting the blanket so he could climb under. For once, the apprentice was not feeling argumentative. They would not deny him his need for human contact. Lucio was immediately pressed flush to their side, arms and legs encircling Elodie, face buried into their neck. “Octopus-style,” Elodie mumbled sluggishly in response to his position, and Lucio burst out laughing. His hot breath tickled and Elodie laughed, squirming away, before turning to kiss him soundly on the mouth. His body loosened and stilled, responding to them in turn. He did not try to escalate anything or take control, perfectly content for this sort of soft interaction. It was everything the Devil’s Realm was not, and for now, that was everything he wanted. As if sensing this, Elodie peppered his face with kisses before embracing him, smoothing their fingers across his head and shoulders and back.

It was...nice, being cared for. It wasn't something he was used to. Not unless you counted acts by his servants, who only obeyed under extreme duress. Nobody had ever done anything like this, though, unbidden, unasked. Lucio watched as Elodie pulled the quilt up to his chin and then watched them shift so Lucio’s arm wouldn’t fall asleep during the night, bemused. He felt a blossom of warmth in his chest. Then Elodie moved to hold the Count against their chest and he went without complaint. The Count listened to their heartbeat, letting it lull him to sleep. “..I’ll protect you next time, darling Elodie. You’ll see. I bet I’ll make you swoon.” he murmured, absolutely exhausted, but not wanting to be _too_ vulnerable. He needed to remind the magician about what he could do.

“Sounds good to me.”

Of course, they knew that. Though it was unnecessary, Elodie knew that Lucio's comfort was contingent on them accepting his help and power.

Satisfied, Lucio pressed himself into the crook of their neck again. Then, quietly, almost as if he was trying to keep them from hearing, “I’m...glad you came after me.”

That was a better thanks than usual. Elodie smiled, lips tugging upward against his hair; even if that hadn’t been the case, he could hear the smile in their voice when they spoke next. “I’m glad I did, too. I like having you here to snuggle.” Lucio grinned against their clavicle. Finally, he let himself sleep—fuck, he couldn’t remember the last time he had needed to sleep. He probably _didn’t_ need to, being a specter, but he wanted to. Even if only so he could share the bed with his tenacious little magician’s apprentice. Also, he had been tortured earlier; he could use a nap.

But Elodie didn’t need those explanations, anyway. They never seemed to have an issue reading into his actions. Every word, breath, kiss, and movement from him said _thank you thank you thank you thank you_, and it warmed them to their core. For now—for tonight—everything would be fine. They would face the Devil in the future. For now, this was enough.


End file.
